Microsoft Xbox Console Sales Double After Price Cut
Sept. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp. doubled sales of the Xbox 360 video game machine last weekend after cutting the price by as much as 29 percent to narrow Nintendo Co.'s lead.
Retailers reported a 100 percent increase in sales for all models compared with the previous weekend, Redmond, Washington- based Microsoft said in an e-mailed statement. Some models sold at six times the previous weekend's rate. The company didn't say how many were sold.
The Sept. 5 price cut gave Microsoft a model that costs less than Nintendo's market-leading Wii for the first time.
Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3, making inroads with new games and a Blu-ray DVD player, also beat the Xbox 360 in U.S. sales in June and July, according to NPD Group, a Port Washington, New York-based research firm.
Microsoft rose 34 cents to $26.44 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=ajZ_LMK1ZdRg&refer=technology
Microsoft: Xbox 360 sales surge on price cut
Microsoft said today that Xbox 360 sales rose significantly following the price cuts announced by the company last week. The company said retailers are reporting that sales of the video-game console increased more than 100 percent over the weekend, compared with the prior weekend.
Of course, it remains to be seen if those bumps will be temporary or lasting. The idea behind the price cuts was to strengthen the company's position going into the upcoming holidays, said David Dennis, a Microsoft spokesman.
Following the price cut, the Xbox 360 Arcade model is selling at six times the previous rate, Dennis said. The new $199 price of that model is $50 cheaper than Nintendo's market-leading Wii game console.
Microsoft declined to provide more specific sales data.
Because of the timing, the effect of the Xbox 360 price cut won't be evident in U.S. console sales figures for August, scheduled to be released Thursday afternoon by the NPD Group market research firm. Benefiting in part from some blockbuster games, the PlayStation 3 has topped the Xbox 360 in the U.S. sales rankings in each of the previous three months.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft/archives/148413.asp